Busy Philipps: I Was Naive Thinking My James Franco Story Won't Cause a Stir

The 'Cougar Town' actress shares her thought on media coverage over her recollection of what her 'Freaks and Geeks' co-star did to her on the set of the short-lived TV show.

Oct 16, 2018

AceShowbiz -
Actress Busy Philipps didn't expect her James Franco bullying story to cause such a stir, because they've previously made amends and discussed the issue at length in public.

The "Cougar Town" star hit headlines last week, ends October 12, as a new excerpt from her memoir, "This Will Only Hurt a Little", was released, detailing an incident in which she was attacked by James on the set of their short-lived TV show "Freaks and Geeks".

Recalling how Franco, who has been dogged by claims of sexual misconduct in the past 18 months, turned on her following a scene that required her to hit him in the chest, she wrote, "He grabbed both my arms and screamed in my face, 'DON'T EVER TOUCH ME AGAIN!' And he threw me to the ground. Flat on my back. Wind knocked out of me."

After calling her former co-star a "f***ing bully," she revealed James apologised to her the following day, after being forced to do so by the show's producers and director.

Busy has since insisted the story shouldn't have come as a surprise to fans as it's a tale she's shared in public on a few prior occasions, so she didn't think it would draw as much attention as it did.

"I knew in writing the book that there was the possibility that things could get extrapolated and turned into click bait," she told news show Access Hollywood.

"I'm very savvy and aware of the kind of world we live in, and I naively, maybe, because the James Franco stuff is something a) that I've talked about for years publicly, and (b), James and I have even been on a panel before talking about it in front of people, I didn't think - and I guess this is where I was naive - that it would get extrapolated and turned into such a crazy story last week," she continued.

Shrugging as she played down the uproar, Busy added, "But then I have no control over the news cycle and how slow the news day is and what people chose to focus on."

"This Will Only Hurt a Little", which hit stores on 16 October, also details Busy's sexual assault at the age of 14, and the abortion she had at 15, among other candid memories.